Matt Smith Archives - Robot 6 @ Comic Book Resources

[Editor’s note: Each Sunday, Robot 6 contributors discuss the best in comics from the last seven days — from news and announcements to a great comic that came out to something cool creators or fans have done.]

In my years of reading comics, Judge Dredd has been a pretty big blind spot for me. That is until the 2012 movie. I loved the relatively low-scale stakes that still managed to pack a lot of character in its limited environment. People like to say that Dredd is about a fascist society, but to me it felt more like the Wild West. Dredd (Karl Urban) and Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) were more like sheriffs enforcing the law in a lawless society, and certain scenes — like Dredd walking down an empty hallway with people left and right — definitely recalled Western imagery. I started to dig into the 2000AD comics and the new IDW series.

Just as there’s room for more than one superhero in comics, there’s room for more barbarian. And on July 1, cartoonist Matt Smith makes his graphic novel debut with a story about a farmer who trades his plow for a sword and ax to become Barbarian Lord.

Originally serialized online, Barbarian Lord is being expanded and honed like a sword on the proverbial smith’s anvil for the Clarion Books release. Mixing the standard-bearer for barbarism that is Conan with elements of Hellboy, Norse mythology, Icelandic sagas and the timeless story of a farm boy becoming a man, Barbaric Lord looks to be a combination of big action and sly humor.

Free Comic Book Day is once again upon us, the day that current and hopefully potential comic fans flock to their local comic shop to sample a buffet of comic choices from publishers large and small. There’s a lot to sink your teeth into this time around, from previews of new or upcoming stuff — like Marble Season and Superman: The Last Son of Krypton #1 to first issues of brand new comics — like The Strangers #1 and Aphrodite IX #1. There are original comics, licensed comics, kids comics, anthologies … basically something for everyone.

Some retailers will offer all-you-can-eat options, while others might have limits on what you can get … so if you have to make a choice, here are six comics we’re particularly looking to sink our teeth into.

The oddest piece of news I’ve seen today is that Dave Sim has drawn an alternate cover for the first issue of IDW Publishing’s Judge Dredd: Year One. The comic’s creative team will please 2000AD fans, as it features current wearer of Tharg’s rubber-mask-and-boiler-suit-combo Matt Smith as writer, underrated “Simping Detective” artist Simon Coleby on interiors, and the great Greg Staples painting the regular covers. Staples is no stranger to the young Joe Dredd, essaying the character as an actor in the Judge Minty fan film, a recent hit at U.K. comic conventions.

This is, I presume, another welcome side effect of Sim’s recent deal to bring assorted Cerebus projects to IDW. Sim’s detente with modern comics continues apace. See both covers, Sims’ and Staples’ almost-ludicrously detailed version, below.

With a little more than two weeks before director Pete Travis’ Dredd 3D arrives in theaters, Lionsgate and 2000AD have released a 10-page prequel comic that delves into the backstory of Ma-Ma (played in the film by Lena Headey), the drug lord responsible for the Slo-Mo epidemic plaguing Mega-City One.

Titled “Top of the World, Ma-Ma,” the comic is written by 2000AD editor Matt Smith, with art by Henry Flint, colors by Chris Blythe, letters by Simon Bowland and a cover by Greg Staples.